The High Court has given orders to give some legal rights to all the rivers in Bangladesh This article by Nawaz Farhin Antara was published in the Dhaka Tribune, January 30th, 2019. -- The High Court on Wednesday accorded the Turag river the status of “legal person” to save it from encroachment and said that [...]
'This would be the first law to recognize the legal rights of a plant species' This news story appeared on the Healing Minnesota Stories website, on January 12th, 2019. The White Earth Band of Ojibwe and the 1855 Treaty Authority are taking action to address the growing threats to native wild rice, such as potential [...]
This update was posted in the San Juan Islander, January 7th, 2019. The group, Community Rights San Juan Islands, met with islanders in December on Lopez, Orcas and San Juan islands to discuss the possibility of a Rights of the Salish Sea (RoSS) initiative in 2019. Following is a summary of the meetings, goals, and [...]
Nature has been treated in law as property, and exploited. But there is growing legal recognition that nature has rights, and affirming these is essential to both a healthy environment and human rights. This article by Mari Margil appeared on Open Global Rights, November 14th, 2018. The human right to a healthy environment is gaining [...]
Celebrating the 10th Anniversary of Ecuador’s Landmark Constitution A Blog Posting by the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund, from September 22, 2018. Happy birthday, Mother Earth! Well, that’s not exactly accurate. How about… Feliz aniversario, Pachamama y Ecuador! Ten Year Anniversary for First Rights of Nature Constitution Next week marks the tenth anniversary of Ecuador’s Constitution, which recognizes [...]
First Tribal Nation to Advance Rights-Based Constitutional Framework to Protect Nature A Press Release from the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund, from September 17, 2018. MERCERSBURG, PA: On Saturday, the General Council of the Ho-Chunk Nation voted overwhelmingly – 86.9% in favor – to amend their tribal constitution to enshrine the Rights of Nature. The Ho-Chunk Nation is the [...]
CELDF partners with Australian Earth Laws Alliance to secure Rights of Nature for the Great Barrier Reef A Press Release from the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund, from August 16, 2018. Today, the Australian Earth Laws Alliance (AELA) launched its campaign, in partnership with the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF), to recognize legal rights of the Great Barrier Reef. AELA [...]
This Avaaz petition was posted July 2nd, 2018. To help broaden support of the Rights of Nature movement please sign and pass on. Thank you from all of us at Community Rights US (CRUS). Dear friends, Nature is being annihilated everywhere - pollution, overfishing, logging, mining. There’s no end to the massacres. But what if nature had [...]
For decades our laws have been a death sentence for the environment. Now, from the Amazon to Australia, the tide is turning This Op-ed by Mari Margil appeared in The Guardian, May 23, 2018. The Amazon rainforest is often called the earth’s lungs, and generates 20% of the world’s oxygen. Yet in the past half-century nearly [...]
This audio interview with Mari Margil was posted on the Oxford Human Rights Hub April 10, 2018. The 30 minute can be downloaded HERE. A brief commentary by Community Rights US media team member Curt Hubatch: Mari Margil made a few points in this interview that really stuck out for me. The first being that climate change, along with the destruction of the [...]
